The Short Version: Dating isn’t a passive process. The right person isn’t likely to fall into your lap, but some working professionals don’t have the time or energy to scour bars and dating websites for a good date. Fortunately, one matchmaking firm offers busy singles an effortless solution to their dating frustrations. Since 2004, Executive Search Dating has employed proactive matchmakers who search for compatible, eligible, and desirable dates in the Vancouver area. These headhunters take into consideration what their client is looking for and then industriously seek out the right person. When you’re on the road to a relationship, Executive Search Dating offers a shortcut by arranging quality dates, providing helpful feedback, and doing all the work required to help you achieve that goal.

In 2002, Paddi Rice completed his MBA at a European business school and returned to his home in Canada as a recently single man looking for a long-term partner. He soon discovered the modern dating scene did not serve busy relationship-oriented professionals. It was too hard to meet someone who was actually relationship material and not just another first date to nowhere.

Paddi wanted to save time by hiring the dating equivalent of a recruiter or headhunter in the business world. He figured a professional matchmaker could more easily navigate the social scene and find the right person for him. He thought that was how matchmaking worked, so he contacted a local dating service. It was a shock to him to find that most matchmakers relied on their own databases to match clients with clients, essentially ignoring a world of dates outside their clientele.

Seeking to better serve time-conscious singles like himself, Paddi decided to start a matchmaking business that would take a proactive approach to connecting people in a long-term match.

“I started Executive Search Dating based on my own experience being dissatisfied with how dating services worked,” Paddi said. “It doesn’t make sense to limit your dating options to a matchmaker’s paid clients.”

Based in Vancouver, Executive Search Dating (ESD) goes out and recruits compatible dates, in addition to drawing from the database, to match clients with their ideal companions. This elite service caters to busy professionals who don’t have the time, energy, or inclination to do all the legwork required to hunt down a date. The team’s hands-on matchmaking is a local solution to a widespread problem.

“We focus on Vancouver, which has a pretty active dating market,” Paddi said. “Our job isn’t to be around the world. We’re the anti-online-dating, and we’ve been very successful because we provide personalized support to singles.”

Meet the Matchmakers Face to Face & Get Personalized Assistance

From start to finish, Executive Search Dating makes the dating experience more enjoyable and efficient. The curated matchmaking process begins with a 45-minute free consultation. Prospective clients sit down one-on-one with a professional matchmaker to discuss their dating goals, dealbreakers, and experiences.

Some busy singles prefer to have this consultation over the phone, but Paddi tries to meet clients face to face, when possible, because it helps them establish a rapport more quickly. “The relationship the client builds with staff is important,” he said. “That’s their first impression.”

Once they have a firm grasp of the client’s likes and dislikes, the matchmakers make a judgment call about whether they can help that individual find the right relationship. Executive Search Dating doesn’t take on just anyone. The team has to reasonably believe they can make a match. The team’s headhunting approach is thorough and time-consuming, so the matchmakers only invest that energy in clients who are open to love and realistic about what they want.

The Executive Search Dating team is powered by people, not algorithms. There’s no one-size-fits-all formula for their matches. Each date is hand-selected based on years of experience and human intuition. The dedicated matchmakers yield fast results and guarantee a minimum number of dates for all their members.

With Executive Search Dating’s support, singles feel more confident about their dating prospects.

Known for their hands-on dating services, ESD’s matchmakers go the extra mile to make dating easier on their clients. After they’ve selected an ideal match, they’ll even make the dinner reservations for the date. Executive Search Dating partners with top restaurants in Vancouver to ensure that all clients have a VIP experience.

Once the date is over, the matchmakers get feedback from both individuals and use that to fuel their dating coaching. All date feedback is confidential and handled discreetly, so singles can be honest about what they thought about one another, and thereby help each other improve over time.

Paddi aims to provide Vancouver singles with everything they need to enjoy dating and fall in love. “Once a client joins us, they literally just have to tell us when they’re available,” he said, “then show up and have fun.”

A Passionate & Experienced Team Goes the Extra Mile For You

Paddi doesn’t just want to arrange dates — he wants to arrange successful dates, so Executive Search Dating handles every aspect surrounding the dating process. Rather than letting Vancouver singles figure it out on their own, the ESD team supports them every step of the way. The staff includes knowledgeable dating coaches who can walk clients through how to dress, what to talk about, and general dating etiquette.

“Getting someone a date is just the first step,” Paddi explained. “Ultimately, our job isn’t done until our client gets in a relationship.”

Many of ESD’s team members have been with the company for several years, getting better over time and fine-tuning the matchmaking process as they go. The team’s overall professionalism and knowledge pay dividends with clients because they lend weight to their personalized recommendations.

Paddi told us his team takes a lot of pride in what they do, not only managing dating lives but actually changing lives by building long-term relationships. The experienced matchmakers go to a lot of trouble to help singles find happiness and satisfaction in love. When a former client sends a Christmas card or wedding invitation, the work is all worthwhile.

“What I look for in my matchmakers are people who feel, to some degree, that they’re on earth to help people find relationships,” Paddi explained. ”

Success Rate: About 75% of Clients Find Lasting Relationships

Over the decades, Executive Search Dating has collected an impressive number of success stories from men and women in Vancouver. Many satisfied clients praise the kind customer service and helpful feedback system that supported them on the way to their happily-ever-afters. But what really sets Executive Search dating apart is the high success rate. Paddi estimated that 75% of clients end up in relationships after working with the matchmakers.

“They did an excellent job of matching us,” said C.L. and Darryl, who got engaged in May 2016. “Since the first date, our relationship has grown stronger as has our love.”

An unattached neurosurgeon named Larry came to Executive Search Dating because he disliked the randomness of online dating. He had no trouble finding women, but he couldn’t find the right woman. In 2011, the matchmakers set him up with Sue, whose sister recommended the dating service to her. Everything clicked on the arranged date. Larry and Sue marveled at how well-suited they were for one another. Now happily married, the couple has ESD to thank for introducing them to that perfect match.

“In a few short years, we went from single to a fulfilling and loving family of four.” — Larry, a former ESD client who found love on an arranged date

“You had captured what the internet could not — chemistry,” Larry wrote in his ESD testimonial. “You were absolutely right that she was an amazing woman and fit every one of the qualities I listed as important.”

“I am so happy with how everything has been going with Executive Search Dating,” wrote Darlene after a stellar first date. “I have been raving about you to all my friends!”

The opportunity to so transform people’s lives is what motivates and energizes the matchmakers every day. They love being part of someone’s love story. “That’s why I started this business,” Paddi said. “For people who are tired of online dating and want to take their dating experience to the next level.”

Executive Search Dating — Proactive Matchmaking For Busy Singles

In 2004, Paddi established North America’s first dating headhunter for Vancouver singles. Executive Search Dating set out to improve the traditional matchmaking model by adding personalized recruitment services, on the off chance that your one true love isn’t in the current client list. Today, the matchmaking team goes out of the way to satisfy their clients with compatible dates and successful matches.

Paddi feels passionately about providing singles with dependable, effective, and straightforward dating services. He has witnessed how finding love can impact a person’s happiness and works hard to bring that life-changing joy to as many people as he can.

“If we can help people in Vancouver get in a relationship and have a family, that’s a pretty worthwhile thing to do,” he said. “We’re old-school in our approach. We don’t have to take over the world; all we have to do is provide personalized, localized service for our clients.”

As the editor-in-chief of DatingAdvice.com, I oversee content strategy, social media engagement, and media opportunities. When I'm not writing about cheese or my 20-year love affair with Leonardo DiCaprio, I'm listening to The Beatles, watching Harry Potter reruns (I'm a proud Slytherin!), or drinking IPAs.

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